Verifying and authorizing work

Abstract

A method or system according to the present disclosure may be used to convey information to enhance customer service. Among other things, methods and systems of the present disclosure allow a service provider to supply customers with information on suggested services in a manner that is efficient, and easy to access. The information can be distributed in a variety of formats and be stored permanently or temporarily.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A system for facilitating vehicle maintenance, the system comprising:
 a server having a memory and being programmed to compress and store video files, and further having at least one user interface for receiving data from a user, the data including video data, the memory configured to store data received by the user for a specific vehicle in a file for that specific vehicle, wherein the file for each specific vehicle includes identification indicia unique to that vehicle.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the identification indicia is the vehicle identification number. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the data further includes one or more of: audio data, text, advertisements, prices, and contact information. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the video data is received wirelessly from a remote source and the server has an API programmed to receive the video data and enter it into the server. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 4 , wherein the data is received wirelessly from a remote source and the server has an API programmed to receive the video data and enter it into the server. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the file for each specific vehicle includes data entered at different dates and times for the specific vehicle. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 6 , wherein each data entered at a different date and time includes the date and time the data was created. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein each data entered at a different time is stored in a subfile within the specific vehicle file. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the data can be retrieved from the server. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the video data includes one or more of:
 (a) images of a vehicle before it enters a repair shop,   (b) images of a vehicle showing one or more areas that require repair,   (c) images of a vehicle showing repair work being performed, and   (d) images of a vehicle after repair work is completed.   
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein a specific vehicle file can be retrieved using the identification indicia unique for that vehicle. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein specific vehicle data can be retrieved by using the identification indicia unique for that vehicle and the date and time associated with the data. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein the server configures the specific vehicle data to be displayed in one of the following formats:
 (a) chronologically,   (b) by the entity that performed the repairs, or   (c) by the type of maintenance or repair performed.   
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the system further includes a data input device configured to input the data into the server wherein the data input device is remote to the server. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 14 , that further includes an API in communication with the server wherein the data input device is programmed to send a communication to the API prior to transmitting data and the API is configured to receive the communication to determine a type of the data input device. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 15 , wherein the API is further configured to receive the data from the data input device and transmit it to the server. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 16 , wherein the API is further configured to transform the data received from the data input device before transmitting it to the server, so that data received from multiple types of data input devices is configured to the same format before being stored on the server. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 15  that includes multiple data input devices. 
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 18 , wherein at least one of the multiple data input devices transmits data in a format different than the format used by the other of the multiple data input devices. 
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 1  that further includes a second server with a memory that receives all of the data except the video data.